Team AMST: White Wine and Black Soot
by memory of a memory
Summary: A new team arrives in Beacon, flying in on the same day as Teams RWBY and JNPR. Adventure waits just around the corner for these young men, but I must ask, what is your favorite fairy tale? The mad inventor, the creative doppelganger, the master swordsman, or the stalwart witch slayer? Rated M for violence, language, and safety's sake. OC Team.


(A/N): Wow, so it's been a while since I've actually completed any of my writing drabbles, as I like to call them. But this one kept calling me back for some reason. Maybe I just got inured with the characters, maybe I'm just a sucker for anything RWBY related, I don't know. But I'd like to consider this the first chapter of my series covering the life and times of a new group of hunters-in-training at Beacon Academy. I hope you enjoy.

* * *

"Wow, I can't believe that we're on our way to Beacon, sis!" A small girl was currently bouncing between the windows of the bullhead, leaving a trail of rose petals in her wake. "This is so amazing!"

"Yeah sis, it's pretty cool. But maybe you should slow down a bit. I think you're just making that blonde guy's air-sickness worse." With that, the long-haired blonde grabbed her smaller sister's shoulder and brought her to a screeching halt.

"But it's just so cool! I never thought that I'd get to be in the same class as you. Now we get to stay together forever sis! Isn't that great?" Ruby Rose's silver eyes sparkled with pure joy as she looked up to her sister.

Yang Xiao Long just rolled her lilac eyes in response. It's true, she loved her sister, but sometimes she wished that Ruby wasn't so dependent on her. "Of course sis. But this might be a good time for you to meet some new people as well. You know, get some new friends; maybe even a couple _Yang_ versaries?" She smirked at that, raising an eyebrow.

Ruby let out a light chuckle before playfully punching her sister's shoulder. "Yang, that was awful."

"Yeah," the blonde said, letting out a sigh, "Even I admit that was reaching a bit." The two sisters then gave each other a glance before bursting out into laughter.

Unbeknownst to the sisters, their uproar had attracted the attention of a scraggly-haired teen who was sitting in the back of the bullhead. "Ugh, so much energy. How is it even possible to maintain that level of enthusiasm? Freak jobs…" The young man then pulled out a large metal gauntlet and a screwdriver and began fiddling with it. As he got lost in his work, he began muttering to himself. "If I just adjust the transformer slightly, the amount of amperes I'd get out of one gram of dust would increase by 22%, if my calculations are correct. Just one slight tweak and…"

"AGGH!" A loud shout caused the teen to jump and twist the screwdriver hard, eliciting a small discharge of electricity to erupt out of the device, followed by a plume of smoke. "Dude, it's everywhere! You're lucky it didn't get in my hair!" Eye twitching, the indigo-haired man looked up, eyeing the source of the noise. Apparently, the airsick teen had finally emptied his stomach all over the floor, right in front of the busty blonde and her hyperactive little sister. "Fantastic," he grumbled, looking down at his smoking gauntlet. "Hopefully Beacon has the parts necessary to fix the transformer. Well, nothing I can do about it now. Might as well catch some sleep while I can." And with that, the man pulled the hood of sweatshirt up over his eyes and fell asleep.

"Ah man, I'm sorry miss. I'm just *urp* not all that used to flying." The armored teen said, face still green.

"Yeah, well, that's no excuse to puke in front of me, Vomit Boy." Yang shouted back, lilac eyes flashing red.

"Yeah, 'Vomit Boy', you shouldn't puke in front of beautiful women." A harsh voice cried from the crowd.

Jaune Arc visibly paled at the comments as he scrambled back against the wall. "Please tell me that I won't be called that for the entire year." He whispered, sweat starting to form on his brow.

"Come on, Yang. You know it was an accident," Ruby said, trying to stand up for the blonde teen, who was currently resembling a kicked puppy.

"Yeah, well, he should've gone to the toilet if he was feeling sick. Not my fault the guy lacks common sense. Freaking Vomit Boy."

"Hey come on, dude probably didn't know where it was." A new voice said, as a young man walked forward. He reached into his purple cloak and pulled out some rags. "Plus, the poor guy looks super nervous. All this flying can't be helping his situation." He then bent down and started cleaning the vomit to the best of his abilities.

"Yeah sis, what this guy said. Wait, who are you?" Ruby looked down at the young man, eyebrow raised in confusion.

"Merlot Trader," the boy beamed back, brushing some of his white hair out of his face. Finishing up with his task, he stood back up. "I'd shake your hand, but that might not be the greatest idea. What with the vomit and all." He chuckled lightly.

"Hi, I'm Ruby. Ruby Rose." The girl said back, a slight amount of hesitance in her voice.

"And I'm her sister, Yang Xiao Long." The blonde added, smiling lightly. "Thanks for cleaning up the puke. Don't think I could handle smelling it for the rest of the trip."

"Not a problem. Had to deal with a lot of puke back on the farm. Animals can be pretty gross sometimes. Well, I should probably get back to my stuff, but let's meet up later. Beacon's pretty big I hear. It'd be nice to see a familiar face when things start getting crazy."

"He seemed nice, right Ruby?" Yang said, elbowing her sister in the rib. "Not even at Beacon yet and you're already making friends. Good for you."

* * *

"You dolt!" A white-haired girl shouted, eyes burning with rage. "Do you have any idea what's in these cases?!" Weiss Schnee was currently looking down at Ruby, arms trembling at her sides. The smaller girl had accidentally bumped into the heiress and spilled her luggage all over the ground. "I'll have you know that they contained-"

"Roughly 20 kilograms of various dusts each, all of which are extremely expensive." A young man cut in, extending a hand to the caped girl, still on the ground. His brown eyes twinkled with mirth, as he pulled the girl up. "It's lucky that no one was hurt, right Schnee?"

"You!" The pale girl shouted, turning her fury towards the interloper. "Who do you think you are, cutting into my lecture like that? Wait a minute, I know you." The white-haired girl stepped back and looked over the tanned man. Tall, with a fighter's build. Not overly muscled, but definitely well-trained. Brown hair that was currently swept back. He was wearing a tan vest over a black shirt, as well as loose-fitting brown pants. He had his emblem, a flower with nine-petals, emblazoned on the back of his vest. Recognition hit her like a brick to the face. "You're Sable Martel!"

The brown-haired man gave a slight bow, "In the flesh. And you're Weiss Schnee. I didn't realize that Atlas's number one businessman was willing to let his little princess go to Beacon."

"And I didn't realize that the Martel Trading Company would allow one of their sons to enter a combat academy instead of a trade school." Weiss countered, locking glares with the tanned boy.

"Please, we both know that my parents didn't give a damn about what I did, once they figured out I had no talent for the family business." Sable responded, crossing his arms across his chest. "And what about you, Schnee? Daddy too busy exploiting the common man to notice his second daughter decided to go to Beacon? Or was it that he decided that it was time for him to finally cut you loose? Maybe focus more on the third child…what was his name…Whitley, right?"

Weiss turned a very interesting shade of red before giving a flustered huff and storming off, muttering curses under her breath. The teen ran a hand through his brown hair, letting out a long sigh. He then turned to the smaller girl next to him, who was currently still trying to process the argument that just happened. "Don't mind her, Red. She's always been like that. As the ice queen said, I'm Sable Martel."

"I'm…I'm Ruby Rose." The girl replied, a blush creeping up her neck.

"Hah! Ruby! That's a fitting name for you, Red. I like it." Sable slapped the girl on the back, as he began to laugh. Ruby just pulled her hood up, hiding her bright red face. "Ah jeez, no need to be embarrassed, Ruby."

"Did…did you really mean all those things you said?"

"Well, I, uh…well I was just dealing it out as fast as she could. Those Schnees, always so focused on being prim and proper." Sable felt the conversation flittering away as he spoke. "Tell you what, why don't you show me that weapon of yours. It looks pretty neat."

Brightening instantly at the mention of Crescent Rose, Ruby grabbed Sable by the hand and dashed off, rose petals fluttering in the breeze. Taking him to a nearby fountain, Ruby unfolded her weapon, deciding to show of its scythe configuration first. "This is my baby, Crescent Rose."

Letting out a low whistle, Sable looked the weapon over. "It's quite the weapon Ms. Rose. Very unique. Although, it's uncommon to see scythes being used these days. Most people prefer a less…complicated weapon."

"Well, I wanted to have a weapon just like my uncle's, but no ordinary scythe would do the trick. She had to be something I created myself."

"So, you're saying you built her by yourself? That is quite the feat, Red. Anything else about it?"

"Well," Ruby said, grinning slightly, "Crescent Rose is also a…" with a flick of her wrist, Ruby shifted the scythe into its rifle configuration. " Customizable, high-impact sniper rifle." At her words, a shot rang out, eliciting a cry of surprise from a nearby woman.

"Hey!" Jaune shouted, "What's the big idea, firing that thing at me! I could've died you know!"

"Oh hey!" Ruby said, turning to look at the newcomer while waving, "It's Vomit Boy. Hi Vomit Boy!"

"Please don't call me that," Jaune said, exasperated. He then looked at Sable, who was looking down at him, eyebrow raised. "It's…it's a long story, man. You don't want to know."

"He barfed." Ruby said bluntly. "He barfed all over the bullhead we flew in on"

"Hey hey hey!" Jaune said, waving his hands in front of Ruby. "Ix-nay on the omit-vay! I don't want everyone in Beacon to know about that!"

"Dude chill," Sable said, "It's fine. Motion-sickness is a very common thing, after all. Why don't you join me and Ruby here? We were actually just talking about our weapons." With that, he extended his hand. "Sable Martel."

The blonde grabbed it, smiling slightly, "Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue. Ladies love it."

"And I'm Ruby Rose!" The young girl interjected, smiling widely. It seemed the teen was in a better mood, having had a chance to discuss Crescent Rose.

"Oh? You're an Arc?" Sable said, raising an eyebrow. "And here I thought I'd be the best swordsman at Beacon this year. Guess I'll have my work cut out for me." Jaune raised his hands, blushing at the unwanted and not technically true praise. "Well, hey, Red and I were going over her weapon. Why don't you show us yours?"

"What? Crocea Mors? It's really not anything special…" Jaune said, trailing off slightly. Drawing the sword, he gave it twirl, before handing it to Sable. "It doesn't transform or become a gun or anything cool like that…"

"Still," Sable said, inspecting the weapon, "The blade is well made and honed to a razor's edge. When was the last time you whetted?"

"Um…I don't really see how that's relevant." Jaune said, paling slightly. "I mean, it's been years…"

Blinking in confusion, the two other teens stared at Jaune before realization hit them. Ruby burst out into laughter, while Sable hid his grin behind his hand, snorting slightly. "No, Jaune, not 'wetted', 'whetted', with an 'H'. When was the last time you sharpened your sword?"

"Oh, um…" Jaune didn't want to say never, as he didn't even know what a whet stone looked like, but he didn't really know what sounded like a believable lie either. "I guess it's been about a week…or…so…?"

"Damn, really? Wow, it holds its edge better than any other blade I've seen. I'm impressed."

"Oh!" Jaune added, gaining a little boost of confidence, "And the sheath does this!" Grabbing the sheath, Jaune hit a small switch, shifting it into its shield configuration. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"Ha! Jaune, you are full of surprises. But yeah, that's fairly handy. Most fighters don't like carrying a shield since it drags them down when they aren't using it, but you've managed to find a way to avoid that particular issue. Although, I suppose it would still weigh the same…"

"It…yeah, it does." Jaune said, sighing slightly.

Ruby, still giggling, picked herself off of the ground, and turned towards Sable. "Alright Sable, time for you to show us your weapon. Where is it? I want to see." Ruby started zipping around, examining the tanned teen from every angle.

"Alright, Red, calm down, I'll show you." Sable began reaching into a small brown sack he was carrying over his shoulder when an announcement blared across the school grounds.

" _Attention all new students. Please report to the amphitheater for the opening speech from Headmaster Ozpin. Thank you."_

"Oh well, another time then." Sable said, pulling his hand out of the sack. "Guess we should head over to the amphitheater then." And with that the three teens started heading back towards the main school building.

* * *

"Yang!" Ruby shouted, latching onto her older sister.

"Ruby!" The blonde responded, swinging the young girl around. "You're in a better mood. Have you actually made some friends?"

"Yang, don't say it like I'm incompetent. And yes, I have made two friends, maybe three, I'm not so sure about the last one." Yang raised her eyebrow at that but stayed silent. "And here they are!" Ruby finished motioning towards Jaune and Sable. Jaune waved meekly in Yang's direction, while Sable flashed a grin.

"Vomit Boy?" Yang said, incredulously. "Seriously?"

"Please stop calling me that." Jaune said meekly, letting out a sigh.

"Sable Martel, pleased to meet you." Sable said, extending a hand. Yang put the appendage in her iron grip and shook, eliciting a surprised look from the teen. "You must be Yang. Ruby mentioned you and your…strength briefly."

"Well, hopefully she didn't say anything bad."

"Yang!" Ruby cried, "I would never!"

Yang merely laughed in response, playfully punching her sister on the shoulder. "Relax sis, just messing with you."

Sable cleared his throat, getting his new friends' attentions. "Well, I actually need to be heading out for a sec. Need to check on the rest of my luggage and what not. Yang, Jaune, Red, I'll see you guys later." And with that, the well-built teen walked off, headed towards a different section of the auditorium. Under his breath, the group heard something about needing to avoid an ice queen right now.

And not even five seconds passed before a familiar feminine voice shouted, "There you are!"

"Oh," Ruby said, turning her head towards the white-clad teen stomping towards them. "Hi Weiss! Did your luggage end up alright?"

"Yes it did, no thanks to you, spaz!" Weiss said, staring daggers at the younger girl.

"Hey!" Yang shouted, stepping between the girls, "No one talks to my sister like that!" Her eyes flashed a dangerous red at that statement.

"It's okay Yang." Ruby interjected, trying to calm her sister down. "It was kinda my fault. I knocked over all her dust cases."

"Yeah, and almost caused a catastrophe. You're still lucky nothing exploded." Weiss added, crossing her arms.

"Come on guys," Jaune said, reminding the group that he was still there. "Why don't we all take a deep breath and calm down. No one was hurt from what I gather, so there's no real reason to be upset, right?"

Letting out a sigh, Weiss unlocked her arms and pulled a small pamphlet from out of her pocket. "Well, I still think you need to read this." Pushing the pamphlet in the red girl's hands, the smaller teen looked over the paper. Apparently, it was a small guide about dust safety and storage methods. "Look it over, you might learn something…you…?"

"You?" Yang asked, wondering why the white-haired girl ended her sentence so oddly.

"Well," Weiss said, flipping her hair back, "It's not like I ever learned your name."

"Oh!" Ruby said, smiling slightly, "I'm Ruby, Ruby Rose. And this is my sister."

"Yang Xiao Long." The busty blonde said, still eyeing the rude teen over.

"And I'm Jaune Arc." The other blonde added, once again reminding the girls that he still existed.

"I don't remember asking for your name." Weiss said, looking over the swordsman.

"Yeah, well, I was just trying to be polite." Jaune replied, trailing off at the end.

"Ruby! Yang!" A voice shouted from the crowd, and a familiar teen worked his way towards the group. "Hey man," Merlot Trader said, turning towards Jaune. "You feeling any better?"

"Yeah, being on solid ground helps a bit." Jaune said, scratching the back off his head while smiling sheepishly.

"Oh great!" Weiss shouted, exasperation tinting her voice. "There's another one!"

"What's the ice queen's problem?" Merlot asked the group, motioning towards the heiress. Weiss muttered something about why people always call her that.

"Don't mind her," Yang said snickering slightly. "Ice queen here just needs to _chill_ out. Maybe go and _cool_ down a bit." The terrible puns caused a collective groan from the group. Merlot actually let out a small boo. "Wow, tough crowd."

"Well, anyways," Merlot said, steering the conversation back on track, "I've been looking everywhere for you guys. Glad I managed to meet back up with you before this big announcement thing Ozpin's got lined up for us."

As if on cue, it was at that moment that the lights in the auditorium dimmed and Ozpin appeared on the stage. "Welcome new students of Beacon Academy!" he shouted, motioning towards all of the students in the room. "You kids are some of the best and brightest Vale, Atlas, Mistral, and Vacuo. And you've all come here with one goal in mind. To become huntsmen and huntresses. Now I'm not saying that the path will be easy, and it certainly won't it be without pain and struggles. But it is rewarding. You will be tested, beaten, and brought down. But you will also be victorious, successful, and brought to your absolute pinnacle. It is not a path that everyone can walk, and you will stumble, make no mistake. Only the determined, the perseverant, and the dedicated will finish this path. But if you do, you will become heroes of Remnant, true huntsmen and huntresses. And your first trial begins tomorrow with your initiation. It is during this time that you will be paired with your partner. You and your partner will live and work together for the next four years, as you attend Beacon. It is also during this initiation that your four-member team will be formed as well. I wish you all the best of luck. But, it is getting late, so if you would be so kind as to follow Ms. Goodwitch to the communal dorm where you will spend your first night here, it may be wise to get some sleep. Good night students, and once again, welcome to Beacon!" And with that, Ozpin walked off the stage. Glynda Goodwitch then walked onto the stage and began directing students to the room where they would all be sleeping tonight.

* * *

"And so, my father looks at the group in his barn before saying, 'That's not a cow…that's my horse!' Wait…that's not right…how did he say that went again?" Merlot put his hand to his chin as he tried to figure out where his joke went wrong.

"Jeez, and I thought Yang's jokes were bad." Ruby said, facepalmming.

"Wait, you think my jokes are bad?" Yang said, forming puppy dog eyes at her sister.

"Um…uh…look it's Sable! Hi Sable!" Ruby exclaimed, quickly trying to distract her sister.

The brown-haired teen waved before walking over. "Hey Red," he said to the short girl. "Yang, Jaune, _Schnee_ , what's-your-face."

"Merlot." The white-haired boy said.

"Gotcha. I'm Sable. So, you guys excited for this big initiation thing tomorrow? I don't know how anyone is going to get any sleep tonight." The tanned teen was practically twitching with excitement at the idea of a combat-focused initiation.

"Yeah," Merlot said, placing his hands behind his head. "It's super exciting. Who knows what we'll be facing after all. Personally, I hope we get to fight some Grimm. I've been itching to test out some of Doom Valor and Pride Bane's newest features. Should be pretty interesting, if I do say so myself."

"Yeah, well, I think you need to take this a bit more seriously." Weiss said, irritation tinting her voice. "Tomorrow's initiation will practically decide our futures after all. It's not something you should simply shrug off."

Merlot cocked his head, staring at the teen inquisitively. "Why not? Worrying about it won't make it come any faster or make it any easier. In my experience, it'll just make you sloppier. And I'm sure we wouldn't want that, ice queen." Grinning widely at the flustered, nonresponse of the heiress, the purple-clad teen then started moving towards the boys' side of the ballroom, waving goodbye towards his new friends. "Well, as much as I enjoy agitating Weiss here, I'm going to have to call it a night. Got to get my beauty sleep after all." With that, he disappeared into the other side of the room.

Letting out a yawn, Jaune stretched out his arms and started following. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but I think Merlot has the right idea. I'm gonna head over to the men's side and catch some z's. Goodnight guys." Sable nodded in agreement, waving bye at his newfound friends before heading to his gender's side of the makeshift dorm as well.

"Well, Ruby, I think now would be an excellent time for you to try and make some more friends!" Yang said, after all the men left.

"But Yang, I already made four!" Ruby pleaded, mustering the best pair of puppy-dog eyes she could. "Sable, Jaune, Merlot, and Weiss. With you that makes five! I'm pretty sure I'm good."

"We are not friends." Weiss said bluntly, cutting into the sisters' conversation. "We're barely even acquaintances. And believe me, I will try my absolute hardest not to associate with you anymore." And with that, she walked off, quickly heading towards the women's side of the room.

"Well, it sounds like my little sister needs to own up to her words and make a new fourth friend then." The blonde said, smiling widely. Quickly scanning the room, Yang pointed at an indigo-haired teen who was currently tinkering with a pair of bulky gauntlets. "How about him? He seems…interesting…"

"Yang, he's clearly busy." Ruby protested. "I don't want to interrupt him when he's working so hard."

"Alright, fine." Yang huffed. Continuing her scan of the room, she pointed at another young man who was in what appeared to be a meditative stance, bastard sword resting across his crossed legs. "Maybe him?"

Ruby just stared at her older sister before retorting, "Yang, I'm pretty sure he's meditating."

"Or he's just sleeping." Yang added, snickering a little. "Fair enough, Rubes, let's keep looking then."

"Can we not?" Ruby said under her breath, not wanting to squash her sister's enthusiasm.

"Alright, last chance. How about…her?" Yang then pointed towards a black-haired girl wearing a black bow and who was currently reading a novel. "I'm sure she wouldn't mind if we just asked her a couple of questions about what she's reading. Then we can get a conversation started and one two three, Ruby's made one more friend!"

"I don't know Yang, doesn't that seem a bit…I don't know…rude?" The hooded girl asked before being grabbed by her sister and dragged towards the reading teen. "Yang, wait, stop, I changed my mind! I don't need a fourth friend! Three is good! Let's stop there!"

* * *

The night passed like any other, and before anyone knew it, the sun had already begun creeping into the morning sky. And soon, the first-year students all found themselves at the locker rooms, gearing up for initiation. Merlot, being an early riser, was one of the first students to arrive and start prepping his gear. Honing his swords and stocking up on dust cartridges, the white-haired teen was surprised when his locker suddenly slammed shut, a trail of red flower petals pooling on the floor. "Hello," the white-haired teen asked, as he looked around. "Is anyone there?"

"Merlot!" The girl shouted, as she flung herself at the young man.

"Ruby!" The purple-clad teen responded, barely dodging his small friend's lunge. "Didn't realize you'd be here so early. I think the only other people here right now are Weiss, that red-headed girl, and the tinkerer over there."

"Yeah, well, I needed to get Crescent Rose stocked up and ready for her big day. She needs to look her best if she's going to be fighting Grimm. How about you?"

"Well, pops always made me get up at the crack of dawn to help out with farm work. Guess I'm just used to getting up this early now." Merlot grinned at that and scratched his neck. The two continued to chat idly as more people began to show up.

"Pyrrha Nikos." A male voice said, snapping the two teens out of their conversation. Looking over, Ruby saw the large teen who had been meditating the previous night. Apparently, the young man had already donned his armor: a thick looking breastplate, grieves, and gauntlets. Both Merlot and Ruby tilted their heads at the sight, after all armor of that caliber was rarely seen, but decided to remain quiet and watch the conversation unfold. The black-haired teen had approached the red-head, gaining the woman's attention. "I thought that was you."

"Ash Crux," Pyrrha responded, smiling slightly. "I didn't realize that you'd be going to Beacon as well…"

"Well, dad wanted me to go to Haven, but I wouldn't stand for it. Had to get out from underneath his shadow after all. In the end, he relented, let me go to Beacon. Said it'd be a waste for me to not go to the school I wanted after all that combat training he beat into me. Although I am surprised to see you here. Thought Haven would snatch you up in an instant."

"Well-"

"So, Pyrrha, given any thought to whose team you want to be on?" Weiss said, butting into the two's conversation. "I'm sure everyone must be chomping at the bit to be your partner." With that, the heiress eyed the well-built teen standing to the left of the red-head. "Even some of the…less desirables."

Ash quirked an eyebrow and was about to say something, when Pyrrha cut him off. "No, not really. I was planning on just letting things happen as they will."

"Well, maybe you'd like to be on a team with me. After all, with my connections and your talent, I'm sure we'd be unstoppable."

"I'm pretty sure that's not how this is going to work," Ash said, stepping forward. "I don't think Ozpin would be so reckless as to let people just pick their teams all willy nilly."

"Well, I think it's a great idea," Pyrrha said, her voice tinted with forced enthusiasm.

Of course, the heiress didn't quite pick up on that, and so continued on, unaware, "Perfect! Why, with us together, our team may be the greatest ones to ever grace the halls of Beacon Academy!"

"You know what else is great? Me, Jaune Arc." The blonde said, as he approached the three teens.

"Oh no, not this moron." Weiss muttered under her breath.

"Hi Jaune, I'm-" Pyrrha began, but was cut off by Ash, who placed a hand on her shoulder. He simply shook his head, as if saying let the poor guy learn his lesson.

"So, Weiss, I've been hearing talk about teams forming today, and I was thinking that it'd be a good idea if you and I teamed up together." Weiss gave a disgusted look before beginning to say something.

"I, uh, actually believe teams are comprised of four people." Pyrrha interrupted, trying to save Jaune from potentially embarrassing himself. Ash ran his hand through his short hair, trying to hide his exasperation at the current situation.

"Really now?" Jaune said as he approached the girl. "Well, maybe if you get lucky, you and, uh, Muscles von HeftyBig here can end up with Weiss and me."

"Do you have any idea who you're talking to right now?" Weiss practically screamed and as she interjected herself between the two teens. "This is Pyrrha Nikos, for crying out loud!"

"Hello again." Pyrrha said, smiling.

"Never heard of her." Jaune said bluntly.

"She graduated top of her class at Sanctum."

"Sounds contagious."

"She won the Mistral Tournament four years in a row."

"Is that good?"

"She's…she's on the cover of Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes!"

"Oh! I love that cereal! It's my all-time favorite!" Jaune said eyes sparkling. "Wait, that's you? Normally they reserve that spot for athletes or cartoon characters, so you must be a pretty big deal!"

"Somebody please shut that guy up!" A voice cried out, "I can hardly think he's so loud. I'll never get my repairs done at this rate." Craning their heads, the four teens looked around a locker to see an indigo-haired teen working on what appeared to be large gauntlets with a soldering gun.

"Hello?" Pyrrha said, looking at the teen in question. "And you are…?"

"Toran Blanc, pleased to meet you, all that jazz. Yes, you're from Mistral. Yes, you're on a cereal box. No, I don't care. No, I don't care whose team I'm on. Now please shut up and let me finish this before-"

" _Attention all first-year students. Please report to Beacon Cliffs for initiation. I repeat, please report to Beacon Cliffs for initiation. Thank you._ "

"Fan-freaking-tastic!" Toran shouted. "Guess I'm just going to have to work with these as they are then." Standing up, he turned towards Jaune, "If we all die in a lightning-induced murderstorm, I'm blaming you." And with that he stormed off, muttering curses.

It didn't take long for the rest of the students to begin filing out of the locker room, all of them eager for the initiation. Jaune, however, stood dumbstruck, amazed that he had struck out so badly. Ruby and Merlot both grabbed him by each of his arms and began pulling him towards the exit. "I…I don't understand," the blonde teen mumbled, "Dad said that all I had to do to be successful with the ladies was to be confident."

"Don't worry buddy," Merlot said, as he patted his noodle-like friend on the shoulder, "I'm sure some day you'll be less of a failure with women."

* * *

"Students!" Ozpin said, as he talked with the candidates, who were all lined up on the cliff's edge. "You've all trained for this moment. Whether it be at a combat school or under the tutelage of an experienced hunter, this is your time to shine! If you look behind me, you will see the great expanse of the Emerald Forest. In the wilds of that forest, you will find all manner of Grimm. It is your job to venture deep within that wilderness and reach an old ruin. In this ruin, you will find relics of a certain persuasion. It is your job to gather one of those relics and bring it back with you to the cliffs. Of course, I don't expect you to do this alone. It is during this time that you will be introduced to your partner. The first, I repeat, the first, solo student you make eye contact with upon entering the Emerald Forest will be your partner for the next four years. You will need to work together in order to obtain one of the relics, and from there, your four-person team will be assembled. I wish you all the best of luck students. Go out there and show those Grimm just why you were accepted at Beacon in the first place."

It was at that moment that Jaune raised his hand. "Oh, Headmaster Ozpin, I have a question!"

Ignoring the blonde, the silver-haired headmaster took a long drink from his mug and smiled. "Alright students," continuing to ignore Jaune's desperate attempts to gain his attention, "We will begin the initiation in three…" All the students, sans Jaune, braced themselves. "Two…" Ash popped his neck, drawing his sword and shield. Toran blinked a couple of times, fighting off exhaustion. "One." And with a smirk, students began launching off of their pedestals, flying into the Grimm infested Emerald Forest.

* * *

"HOLY SHIT!" Sable shouted, eyes watering from the wind whipping past his face. This was quite possibly the last thing he expected, being launched like this. Quickly regaining his bearings, the tanned teen looked around, noticing the other students were starting to make their descent in various ways. "I guess I have no option." The young Martel said as he clasped his hands. Glowing slightly, his aura beginning to shine, he muttered, "I call upon the seventh petal, petal of granite. Stone Dragon!" His aura began shining intensely before turning a deep gray. And with that, he began plummeting towards the ground at a much faster rate.

Bracing himself, he slammed into the forest canopy at near terminal velocity, tearing through the trees before landing on the ground with a resounding impact. Unclenching his body, Sable opened his eyes, and took stock. While he certainly felt rattled and slightly bruised, he determined that no lasting injuries had been sustained, and with a sigh, the faint gray halo that surrounded him dissipated.

Of course, with the amount of noise he created it wasn't long before Grimm were upon him, namely a trio of Beowulfs. Grimacing, Sable quickly sidestepped a lunging swipe, before reaching into his small, velvet bag, pulling out a silver ball roughly the size of his head. Smirking, the teen tumbled underneath a bite from one of the monsters. As if by magic, the orb in his hand shifted into an ornate dagger, which Sable quickly thrust into the underbelly of the Beowulf, causing the beast to let out a shriek of pain.

Regaining his footing, the dagger elongated into a long sword, which the brown-haired teen gave a twirl before taunting the uninjured Grimm into attacking him. Expertly parrying a wild slash from the first, he used his momentum to lean into his swing, catching the second uninjured Beowulf in the neck, cleanly decapitating the monster. Switching his grip on the blade, it quickly shifted into the form of a rapier. "Now then," he said, motioning towards the remaining Grimm, "Who's next?"

* * *

Ash wasn't having a good time. Never one for heights, the well-built teen felt like his stomach had decided to take up permanent residence in his feet. Holding back the bile that was rising up in his throat, Ash clenched his weapons, a well-made bastard sword and heavy steel shield, until his knuckles turned white. Looking down at the rapidly approaching forest, the teen came up with a landing strategy, albeit not a particularly pleasant one. "This is either going to work tremendously well, or I'm going to kill myself. Either way, it's definitely better than crashing into the earth like an idiot." Grimacing slightly, Ash placed his shield underneath his feet, and crouched down. Pointing his sword at the rapidly approaching tree line, he flipped a switch on the sword's hilt, causing the blade to open down the center and pull back. Electricity began sparking in the open middle of the sword, and right as he punched through the canopy, he pulled the trigger on his sword, unleashing an incredibly powerful shot at the ground, killing all of his downward momentum.

Landing on his shield a moment later. Ash stood up, rubbing his right shoulder. "Ahh, that always stings." Wincing as he flipped his weapon back into its sword configuration, the warrior quickly began focusing on the sounds of the forest. "Now then, I was pretty close to Pyrrha when I was launched, but who knows where that girl ran off to," he muttered to himself as he began walking in what he hoped to be the direction of the ruins. "So long as she doesn't get stuck with that idiot blonde…"

As the black-haired teen advanced, he wasn't surprised to hear the sounds of combat coming from his right. What did surprise him was the fact that it sounded like it was four, possibly five, versus one. "Dammit, sounds like whoever that is might need some help…" Ash then began to run towards the fight, shield placed in front. As he burst out of the forest into what appeared to be a small clearing, he saw a brown-haired teen currently fighting with a pack of Beowulfs, three standard and an alpha. Judging from extensive damage in the area and the black ichor on his greatsword, Ash guessed he had been fighting since he landed. Wasting no time, Ash quickly leapt into the fray, sword shining in the morning sun. Catching one of the standard Beowulfs unaware, the warrior smiled as he felt his blade slice through the creature's shoulder, cutting deep into the beast's torso. The Beowulf let out a low howl before collapsing, dead.

Without any hesitation, Ash ran forward, slamming his shield into the chest of another Beowulf, pushing the Grimm away. Moving back, he felt the other teen had pressed his back up against his, his unusual weapon having changed into a scimitar. "Good timing man," the tanned teen said. "I could use a little help here." Ash merely grunted in response before charging forward again, towards another Beowulf. Smacking the lunging claw away with his shield, Ash closed the distance in a matter of moments, slamming the hilt of his sword into the beast's gut. The Beowulf let out a choked grunt, before Ash stabbed his sword up through the beast's muzzle, killing it instantly. He then turned to face the alpha.

Sable was moving like a dervish, expertly rolling around the last standard Beowulf's clumsy swipes and bites. And every time he passed the foul creature, he let loose with a flurry of slices. None of the attacks cut deep, but the constant damage was beginning to affect the beast's stamina and speed. The Grimm, in one desperate final move, lashed out with its claw, overextending itself in the process. Sable, seeing the mistake, took advantage of it in an instant. Jumping into a tumble, Sable used his forward momentum to pop up and lop off the Beowulf's arm at the shoulder. The Grimm wobbled and then fell, dying in moments.

The alpha Beowulf, noticing that it was outnumbered, quickly jumped back into the forest, focused on surviving to kill another day. "Yeah you better run!" Sable yelled into the forest, spitting in the direction that the Grimm had run off. Smiling slightly, Sable then turned to the other teen and extended a hand, his scimitar shifting back into its resting sphere form. "Sable Martel."

Ash grabbed the other teens hand and shook it. "Ashlyn Crux. Friends call me Ash though."

"Alright then, Ash, it looks like you and I are going to be partners for the next four years. Let's hope they'll be good ones."

"Agreed." The two teens then let go of each other's hand and continued forward, intent on claiming one of the relics before they were all gone.

* * *

"WAAAHOOO!" Merlot yelled, as he flew through the air. Hazel eyes glittering with tears as the air screamed past his face, the white-haired teen quickly scanned the area around him, trying to figure out how the others were landing. Seeing some use their Semblances to land, while others judiciously used their weapons to slow their descent, Merlot decided on the latter. Using one sword to cut through the tree line, he then casually stretched his other sword out, catching the side of a nearby tree in the process. Feeling his arm strain at the shift in momentum, the purple-clad teen flung himself forward, simply relying on his aura to fix his injured arm. Breaking into a tumble once he hit the ground, the teen rolled forward, popping back on his feet. He then quickly entered a fighting stance, after taking a moment to reorient himself. Upon seeing no immediate threat, the teen relaxed a bit.

"Well, that was fun. I'll have to remember to ask Oz to let me do that again sometime." Rotating his right arm, he felt strength returning to it, his aura already fixing any damage his landing strategy might have done to it. Adjusting the swords in his hands, one brilliantly white while the other was black as pitch, both with ornate cross guards, Merlot proceeded to run forward, hoping to find both his new partner and one of the relics. And maybe some Grimm as well. After all, a little bit of combat always helped loosen him up a bit. As he walked, he began thinking about the various kinds of Grimm he might encounter. 'Oh, I wonder what species live in the forest. Certainly Beowulfs, they're one of the more common Grimm in Vale. Definitely Ursa as well. Who knows? I might even run into a Death Stalker. That's be neat. In fact-'

Merlot was suddenly dragged out of his inner thoughts when he heard the sound of a thunderclap overhead. Slowing down and looking up at the sky, the boy mumbled to himself, "That's odd…I don't remember hearing anything about rain today." Feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand up followed by the unmistakable smell of ozone, the white-haired teen quickly dove from where he was standing, a bolt of lightning striking not even a foot from where he had been. Quickly scanning the sky, looking for storm clouds, he was surprised to see another teen coming down from the air, using concentrated blasts of electricity to slow his fall.

Toran did feel bad; after all he almost just fried a kid while he was trying to land. Granted, it wasn't like he was trying to hurt the poor bastard, he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. And, of course, the kid was alone too; no partner in sight. 'Figures,' he thought, 'Guess I'm gonna be stuck with this clueless kid for the next four years…I wonder if it's not too late to drop out.' Landing safely on the ground, the indigo-haired teen spoke up, "Oi! Purple! You can come out now, promise I won't zap ya!"

Merlot popped out of the bush he was totally not cowering in and took a good look at the guy who nearly electrocuted him. Dark blue hair, unkempt and scraggly. Deep bags under his bloodshot eyes. Wiry build. Wearing a black hoodie and blue jeans, as well as some absolutely massive metal gauntlets. Emblazoned on the left breast of his sweatshirt was a blue cog with sparks coming out of it. His emblem most likely. Merlot smiled sheepishly and approached the teen. "Hey man, didn't mean to run like that, you just startled me with the light show." Extending a hand, Merlot's smile shifted to a much more genuine one. "My name's Merlot Trader."

"Toran Blanc," was the tired response from the other teen. "I'd shake your hand, but I didn't have enough time to fix the capacitor on this damn thing. I'd just end up giving you a nasty jolt."

"You could always turn them off, right?" Merlot responded, cocking his head inquisitively.

"Unfortunately, the transformer is still a bit wonky too. It'd take too long to turn them back on. Never know when you could get ambushed out here…"

"Still, those are pretty cool. They're some sort of taser gauntlets, right?"

Toran's eyes lit up briefly, before a cocky grin appeared on his face. "I'll have you know that the Static Breakers are state-of-the-art weapons, built by yours truly. Running on electricity dust, they convert the raw energy of the fuel into powerful bolts of lightning. The gauntlets, when properly maintained, can deliver blasts of electricity over 30,000 amperes in strength. They're my pride and joy."

"That's so cool, man! I built my weapon too!" Quickly throwing up his swords, the smaller teen continued, "The white sword is named Doom Valor, while the black one is named Pride Bane. And, before you ask, yes, they are a set. The two work together, like two drumsticks beating on a drum. The swords are made of a polished steel alloy of my own design, incredibly sharp and can hold their edge for over an hour of prolonged combat. Lightweight, durable, these two have been with me since the beginning. And they have one more trick as well, when I shift the cross guards like this-"

"That's great Merlot," Toran interrupted, his voice distracted and clearly not focused on his partner, "Tell me, are any of those features good at fighting of a pair of Ursa?"

"Well, yeah, I suppose. They're a pretty solid set of swords. Why do you ask?" Merlot suddenly felt a shoulder slam into his chest as he was pushed out of the way by Toran, a large, black claw slamming into the dirt where he was standing.

"Oh, no particular reason." Toran said, as he looked at the two foul-tempered Grimm who had walked into their conversation. "Just figured I should ask…"

Roaring menacingly, one of the Ursas got down on all fours, red eyes glaring at the two teens. Foam dripping from its mouth, the bear-like Grimm charged the blue-haired teen, only to be driven off course as several arrows slammed into its flank. Smirking, Merlot lowered his weapon, a black and white bow, before pulling it apart, both swords returning to their melee configuration. "As I was saying, the swords have a unique feature of linking together to form a bow. With the variety of arrows I keep on my person, I'm able to distract, hamper, and confuse any and all of my foes." Not wasting any more time, Merlot then rushed forward, swords reflecting the sunlight. Shifting his momentum at the last second, the purple-clad teen narrowly avoided a retaliatory strike from the injured Ursa, before lashing out with his own weapons, Doom Valor and Pride Bane cutting deep into the Grimm's already injured side.

"Listen," Toran pointlessly said to the Ursa that remained focused on him. "I'm really not much of a fighter. I'm more on the supply side of weapons than the user side." Roaring, the monster swiped at the scraggly teen, who quickly stepped to the side, avoiding the blow. "But I can see that this talk is wasted on you." Clenching his plated fist, large amounts of electricity began pouring out of the weapons. He then threw a solid haymaker at the Grimm, the blow staggering the beast and letting out a satisfying crunch. Bobbing around another wild swipe, the inventor let loose with a few more jabs into the monster's torso, a slight grin on his face as he heard the Ursa grunt in pain. Taking a few steps back, Toran threw his hands out in front of him, "Why don't you just go ahead and die." And with that, a huge bolt of electricity flew out of his gauntlets, tearing a massive hole in the Grimm's torso.

Merlot, on his side of the fight, was currently toying with the injured Grimm, lazily avoiding its reckless attacks before countering with well-placed sword strikes. Parrying another strike with Pride Bane, Merlot pushed the weakened Grimm back, before impaling the monster on Doom Valor, finally finishing the beast off. "Well, that was a fun warm-up. What's next?"

"How about fifteen feet of big, dark, and ugly?" Toran whimpered, as he stepped back towards his partner.

"That sounds like fun. What…is…it…?" Merlot said as he turned to look at what Toran was looking at. What currently had the indigo-haired teen so nervous was in fact, a massive gorilla-like Grimm, bone spikes coming out of his back and large bone plates wrapping around its arms and chest. Letting out a tremendous roar, the thing's red eyes bore into the two teens in front of it. "Is that a Buster Kong?" Merlot asked, looking at his partner, face visibly paling.

"Yup," Toran squeaked back.

"Run?" Merlot asked, as he slowly began backing up.

"Yup." And just like that, the two teens tore off into the forest, the massive Grimm giving chase.

* * *

"Well, I guess this is the spot." Ash said, as he and Sable emerged from the forest. Looking at the clearing, both of the teens could see a large ruin with a variety of statuettes resting on some sort of makeshift stand. Sable also noticed a familiar face. "Yo! Yang! What's up?" The brown-haired teen yelled as he ran over to the busty blonde, his partner following close behind.

"Hey Sable, glad to see that you finally arrived." The brawler replied, giving her friend a hi-five when he approached. "Wasn't sure if you could make it through those dark, scary woods. I hear tale of ferocious Grimm that live in there."

"Please," Sable said, shrugging, "It was just some Beowulfs. Nothing we couldn't handle, right, Ash?"

"Nothing I haven't fought before," Ash agreed, nodding slightly. Approaching the two girls, he extended a hand towards Yang. "Ash Crux, Sable's partner. Apparently you two have already met."

"Yup," the blonde said, grinning. "Name's Yang Xiao Long." She then shook Ash's hand. The dark-haired teen's eyebrow twitched as his hand crunched in the blonde's grip.

The other girl then approached as well. "Hello," she said, garnering the two boys' attentions. "My name is Blake Belladonna. It's a pleasure to meet you two."

"Likewise," Sable said, giving a slight bow. Ash simply nodded at the girl. "So, are these the relics we were supposed to gather?" Sable said, looking over the artifacts.

"They're…chess pieces?" Blake questioned, examining the statuettes closely. Picking up the golden knight piece, she quickly pocketed it.

"Interesting that there are so many," Ash said, picking up the golden bishop. "I suppose any will do then…"

"Wait, did you guys hear something?" Yang asked, causing the group to quiet. Suddenly, bursting through the tree line, came an orange-haired girl and a green-clad boy, both of whom were currently riding an Ursa. "What the…" was all Yang managed to say before the Grimm collapsed from fatigue.

Lie Ren loved his partner like a sister, but sometimes even she could test the limits of patience. And her little stunt with the Ursa was certainly pushing the boundaries of what he could tolerate. Quickly dismounting the large beast, who had apparently died from exhaustion, Ren scanned the area, noticing the four teens standing by the ruin. And he noticed his partner was also running up there as well. Sighing, he followed.

"Hiya!" Nora beamed, "My name's Nora Valkyrie. I like pancakes, violence, and pink. What about you guys?" Nora didn't even wait for a response before she had picked up a golden rook piece. "Oh, so shiny. I'm queen of the castle, I'm queen of the castle."

Ash was exhausted just looking at her bounce around. He felt bad the poor sap who was stuck with her, honestly. He was about to give his name when another noise grabbed his attention. Namely, the sound of a Death Stalker chasing Pyrrha, as the red-head ran towards the group. "Fantastic," he groaned, drawing his sword, "She brought a Death Stalker."

"Has that thing been following her since she landed?" Ren asked; a concerned look plastered across his face.

"Uh…Ash, buddy, don't look now, but I think we may have another problem…" Sable said, motioning towards the sky. Everyone looked at where the teen was pointing to see a giant Nevermore flying towards them. And clinging to its talon was a small white blur.

"Weiss!" Ruby cried, causing everyone to turn towards the small girl, unaware that she had even arrived. Apparently she had already grabbed a chess piece too, the other golden knight.

"Schnee?" Sable asked, incredulous. "How the fuck did she get up there?"

"Well, she won't be up there for long." Yang said, noticing that the heiress was beginning to lose her grip. And just like that, Weiss Schnee began to plummet towards the ground for the second time today.

"I got her!" A new voice shouted, as Jaune launched himself out of a nearby tree, catching the pale girl in midair. "So, snow angel, I guess you've finally fallen for me." Smirking slightly, the blonde seemed to forget that he really had no way of recovering while in midair, and so he too began plummeting towards the ground. Slamming into the dirt, Weiss followed behind him, landing on his back.

"Oh, my hero." The heiress snarked, rolling her eyes as she stood up.

"Oh, my back." Jaune whimpered, struggling to stand as well.

"OH MY GOD!" Merlot cried, as he and his partner came running out of the woods, a huge boulder having been hurled at them. Narrowly avoiding the projectile, the two boys kept running towards the other teens who were assembled by the ruin.

"You have got to be kidding me," Ash muttered, facepalming. "And what, may I ask, is chasing those two?" As if it heard his question, that's when the Buster Kong came tearing out of the woods, a primal roar escaping its mouth.

"Oh great, now we can all die together." Yang grumbled, shaking her head.

"Guys, the Death Stalker? We need to help her fight it off!" Ruby shouted, as she sped off towards the Scorpion-like Grimm, hoping to help the red-head, who was currently engaged with it.

"Wait, Ruby, come back! Don't be so reckless!" Weiss shouted, tearing off after her new partner.

Blanching, Sable quickly snagged a random relic and tossed it to his friend, Merlot catching it in midair. "What's this," he cried, sprinting towards the group, "A golden bishop?"

"One of the relics," Sable returned, "No idea what Oz is planning to do with them, but now that you have one, I feel the need to am-scray. Now give this one to Jaune and let's get going!"

"Hey, we're still in mid-peril, you idiots!" Weiss screamed, as she turned her attention back towards the Death Stalker, who was currently bearing down on Ruby, completely unaffected by her assault.

"Yeah, well, it's no picnic over here either!" Toran yelled, as he sidestepped a massive blow from the ape-like Grimm. With that, the inventor unleashed a torrent of electricity, which seemed to do nothing but lightly tickle the monster. Bracing himself for the beast retaliation, he was surprised to hear the sound of bone clashing with metal. Opening his eyes, he saw Sable blocking the beast's attack with a great sword, a faint gray aura surrounding him.

"Any friend, or partner in this case, of Merlot is a friend of mine. Can't just let this thing flatten ya. But wow is it strong!" The brown-haired teen muttered, doing his best to push the Grimm back. "A little help please!" He said, looking back at his partner.

"On it!" Ash shouted, as his sword slammed into the beast's arm. Unfortunately, the bone plating was far too thick to be cut clean through by his weapon, and the blade merely bounced off, chipping the armor slightly. Quickly raising his shield, the warrior was barely able to block the retaliatory strike from the ape, being knocked back a good couple of yards. "You! Purple! We could use some help here!"

"Give me second!" Looking over at the Death Stalker fight, Merlot noticed Weiss encase the scorpion's tail in ice, using her glyphs to do so. "Awesome, she can use glyphs!" Closing his eyes, the teen took a deep breath and calmed himself. "You can do this," he muttered to himself, "Focus on her Aura, on her Semblance. Feel it and be one with it." Opening his eyes, a snowflake appeared in each of his pupils. Quickly throwing some earth dust in front of him, he created a glyph of his own, the dust reacting with his semblance. "Guys! Get back," he shouted, and the second they did, a large rock wall surrounded the Grimm, entrapping it.

"Guys!" Jaune yelled, "We've got a problem! I think that thing is flying back for another round!"

"Into the forest!" Ash roared, as he charged towards the tree line. "Get under cover!" The rest of the teens wasted no time, all of them tearing into the woods. None of them saw that the two trapped Grimm had started to break out of their hastily-made prisons.

* * *

"We have to be close to the cliffs by now," Toran grumbled, as the twelve teens ran through the woods. "It feels like we've been running for miles."

"Well, we were launched pretty far…" Merlot responded, ignoring his partner's negative attitude.

"Hold up guys!" Yang said, skidding to a halt. "What is this?" The group had reached a deep canyon; a bridge spanning across the depths. And built halfway across said bridge was a dilapidated tower, the stone crumbling away into the gorge.

"Well, if we get into the tower, it should provide cover from the Nevermore," Ash mumbled, as he analyzed the situation. "And I'm pretty sure once we climb those cliffs we'll be back where we were launched from."

"I think we may have a more pressing issue at the moment, Ash." Blake said, as she drew Gambol Shroud. The giant Nevermore had apparently decided that this was the place where it would finally take care of the teens. It crowed loudly as it perched atop the tower, yellow eyes burning with barely constrained malice.

"Ah, shit." Toran grumbled, electricity starting to spark from his Static Breakers. "Of course it couldn't be easy." It was at that moment that the Death Stalker and Buster Kong also decided to make their triumphant return, a blood-curdling hiss and a defiant roar coming from both of the monsters.

"Just had to say something, didn't you?" Sable said, his weapon quickly morphing into a long sword. "Well, I think Ash and I will finally take care of the ugly one. Jaune, I trust that you can finish off the Death Stalker." With that, he charged the ape-like Grimm, letting out a fierce battle cry. Nodding at the others, Ash quickly followed his partner, shield raised in front of him.

"Dammit Sable, I'm not letting you have all the fun!" Merlot shouted as he chased after his friend, his eyes glowing with determination.

"Wait, come back you reckless little! Gah!" Letting out a small bolt of electricity in frustration at his partner's careless attitude, the indigo-haired teen grimaced before also running into combat with the Buster Kong. "This is gonna suck…"

* * *

"Alright you big, dumb bastard. Let's dance." Sable said, grinning widely. Twirling his weapon, he nimbly dodged a punch from the beast. He used his momentum to tumble around the large Grimm, and hacked at the backside of the creature's legs, hoping to cripple the monster.

"Reckless fool," Toran grumbled, "You should know by now that that isn't going to work." The inventor let loose with a blast of electricity, but his attack, just like Sable's wasn't strong enough to punch through the Grimm's tough hide.

With a snide grin, Merlot approached his partner, "I don't see you doing any better Toran."

"Shut it Trader. I'm just figuring out the best approach to take this thing down."

"Really, 'cause it looks like you're just throwing shit to the wall to see what sticks." The white-haired teen muttered as he evaluated the large Grimm fighting his friends. "No, this thing's hide and plating is just way too thick for normal attacks to pierce through. We're gonna need some big, showy, elaborate attack to take this thing out."

"Why do I get the feeling that you have just such an attack?" Toran grumbled as he looked back at his partner.

"Well, pops always said that you got to go big or go home. It'll just take a minute to actually prep the damn thing."

"Do you two actually have a plan, or are you just shooting the breeze?" Ash shouted, as he barely managed to block another crushing blow from the Breaker Kong.

"Give me two, no three minutes. I've got to jury-rig something together real fast." Merlot shouted back, as he started pulling several arrows out of his quiver.

Toran raised an eyebrow inquisitively at his partner's actions before turning back towards the fight. "I think I'm gonna like this, Trader. Guess you've got some guts after all." He then launched himself forward on a pulse of electricity, rejoining the other two teens fighting the ape-like Grimm.

Letting out a wild yell, the inventor cocked his fist back, ready to lay into the Grimm, only to be swiped away by the massive creature. Slamming into Sable, the two men entangled and collapsed on the ground. This then forced Ash to leap over them, his charge ruined. Raising his shield, he just barely managed to block the Buster Kong's fist. Looking into the monster's eyes, Ash swore he could see some form of macabre humor shimmering in their yellow light. He immediately leapt back, disengaging from the beast.

"Focus you two!" Ash said, raising his voice just loud enough to be heard over the sounds of the other battles. "If we need to buy Merlot a couple minutes, then you two need to listen to me, because this won't be easy." He then turned towards Toran, "You, Blanc, what's your Semblance?"

"Amplify," the blue-haired teen called back, "I can boost the Semblance of any other person or increase the power of any dust-based weaponry."

"Great, so the opposite of mine." Ash grumbled, as he turned towards his partner. "And I'm still not quite sure what the hell you're all about Sable, but if you have anything that could help…"

"Actually, I just might. You want a distraction, then I'm your man." With that, Sable focused his Aura, his weapon shifting into a wicked looking scimitar. "I call upon the first petal, petal of garnet. Desert Wind!" With that his aura shone a golden red, and he darted forward moving with a grace beyond what he had shown earlier. Gracefully spinning around the massive Grimm, Sable then started slicing at the creature; shallow cuts that didn't hurt the beast, but as the onslaught increased in speed, Sable's weapon began glowing with a powerful heat. Smirking slightly, Sable bounced away from the monster and unleashed a massive gout of flame, scorching the creature.

The Buster Kong roared in defiance, pounding its chest. Locking eyes with the tanned swordsman, the Grimm charged forward, clearly trying to overrun the teen. Smirking, Sable quickly rotated his wrist, his aura shifting to a hazy orange. "I call upon the fifth petal, petal of topaz. Setting Sun!" His weapon then shifted to a short sword, clearly not designed for head-on attacking. "Toran! Get ready!"

"What?" The inventor shouted back, unsure of what his partner's friend was planning. It was then that Sable moved with a fluidity he had never before shown. Deftly maneuvering past the ape-like beast, he quickly parried the oncoming fist with his blade. Grabbing the Grimm's massive arm with his left hand, he shifted his weight and turned the monster's momentum against it, flipping it into the air and driving it hard onto the ground.

Toran, wasting no time, immediately rushed forward, his Static Breakers discharging far more electricity than before. "Hope you like a burst of amplified lightning, you son of a bitch!" And with that an absolute torrent of electricity shot out of his gauntlets, striking the beast in its relatively unarmored underbelly. "Maybe we don't need Merlot's ace after all." Toran gasped, his overworked Semblance all but destroying his endurance.

"I hope so, I can't go on for much longer." Sable panted back, fatigue evident throughout his body. His aura shifted back to its neutral color, his weapon reverting to its ball-shape.

"MOVE!" Ash roared, shoving his partner out of the way. He then took a blow to his breastplate, denting it slightly and launching the young man back. The Buster Kong had stood up, roaring after its successful attack. Catching himself before falling prone, Ash immediately ran back into the skirmish, sword shining in the fading light. "Merlot! How much more time do you need?"

"I need like another half a minute!" The white-haired teen shouted back, as he rapidly fiddled with something under his cloak.

"I don't know if we have that much time." Ash muttered as he engaged the Grimm. Doing his best to parry any strikes into glancing blows off of his armor, Ash was clearly struggling against the creature; which was, unfortunately, the best he could do at the moment. "Toran, Sable, if you've got anything left, now would be the time!"

"Got it partner." Sable wearily responded before shifting his weapon into a simple longsword. He then quickly engaged the Buster Kong on its flank, doing his best to divide the beast's focus.

"I think I've got one good shot left in me. Let's find out." Toran then began building up electricity between his hands, his eyes glowing with his Semblance's power. "How about one more for the road, you bastard!" He then lobbed what could only be described as a lightning grenade at the Grimm, which exploded on impact. The blast left the Grimm stunned but not dead. It also had the unfortunate side effect of knocking back Sable and Ash, knocking the former unconscious. Toran then collapsed in a heap, completely spent.

Growling as he stood back up, Ash locked eyes with the Grimm, desperate to keep its focus on him and not the two unconscious teens around it. Flicking a switch on his sword, the weapon shifted into its railgun configuration. "Merlot, I'm trusting that you've got the eyes of a hawk right now." He then began strafing the creature, turning its back to Merlot. "Don't blow this chance." He then raised his weapon and fired, the powerful shot ripping through the Grimm's hide and coming out the other side. The monster staggered, but wasn't dead yet, malice filling its eyes. Lunging forward, it grabbed Ash by his head, intent on crushing it like a grape.

Raising his bow, Merlot took aim at the new hole in the creature's protective rear plating. "Get your hands off of him, you damned, dirty ape!" He then fired the arrow, or, more accurately, he fired off three arrows that were hastily bound together with rope. The attack hit the creature right in its wounded back, dead center on the hole. With a horrendous roar, flame, lightning, and ice all erupted throughout the monster's body, all but vaporizing it in a mere moment and launching Ash backwards, who seemed surprising less harmed by the attack than he should have.

Running over, Merlot helped the large teen to his feet. "Holy shit, are you okay?"

"Yeah, managed to nullify a good chunk of that blast. Now come on, we need to get these two back to the Academy."

* * *

"Ashlyn Crux, Sable Martel, Merlot Trader, Toran Blanc. The four of you retrieved the white bishop pieces. From this day forward you will work together as team AMethyST, led by Ashlyn Crux." The four teens stood on the stage in the main hall, as the audience cheered around them. "Congratulations you four. I hope the following years prove to be informative and eventful for you all." The four then gave a bow before returning to the audience. "Next we have Cardin Winchester…"

* * *

(A/N): And that's a pretty good stopping point for now. I know we just covered a lot of ground in one chapter, but I really don't want to get hung up on a lot of the opening stuff. After all, RWBY really doesn't get great until you get past those first 8 episodes. I can't promise when the next chapter is going to come out, after all, this one took like a year to finally write down, but it may or may not be just as long as this one was. So, get excited to see how our boys deal with the everyday life of Beacon Academy. It certainly won't be easy, especially with friends like Teams RWBY and JNPR, but I think they can handle it. Catch ya next time!


End file.
